I can see the AyrScout Camera over the Internet, but not when I'm at home. What's wrong?

One of the most common problems is what we call the "wrong network" problem. Many of us have combination modem/router access "gateways" that were provided by our ISPs and feature WiFi Access Points - if you accidentally connect to a non-AyrMesh router, you won't be able to access your Cameras, or you may need to use the "External" links to do so. First off MAKE SURE your AyrMesh Router and Hubs have a DIFFERENT SSID from any other routers so you can be sure you are accessing the AyrMesh network.

If you accidentally connect to another network, check your WiFi settings and re-connect to the AyrMesh Router or Hub. We generally recommend turning the WiFi on your "gateway" OFF to prevent this problem. If you can't turn it off, you can have all your devices "forget" its SSID and passkey so they can't accidentally connect to it.

If you are sure you are on the AyrMesh network, we have also seen that the Windows Firewall is preventing users from making TCP/IP connections to devices on "adjacent networks" - subnets attached to the subnet on which your computer resides. For instance, the AyrMesh Router's subnet is 10.0.0.1 to 10.0.0.254. A Hub connected to the AyrMesh Router will create a connected subnet, 10.x.y.1 to 10.x.y.254, where x and y are determined by the Hub's MAC address.

So, commonly, your computer connected to your Router might have an IP address like 10.0.0.123, and your camera connected (via WiFi) to your AyrMesh Router might have an IP address like 10.250.250.84 (these are the addresses of my computer and Camera).

The Problem

You can tell that the camera is "visible" on the network by starting a Command Prompt (Start -> All Programs -> Accessories -> Command Prompt) and typing "ping 10.250.250.84" (using the address of your AyrScout Camera instead of 10.250.50.84):

If you don't get an answer from the Camera, then there's a different problem. However, if the camera "answers" the ping, then try to bring up the Camera's web server in a browser. Typically, the Camera won't respond:

This indicates that your Windows Firewall is blocking access to your Camera - even though the computer can send a packet to the Camera and get a packet back via ping, it won't allow you to create a "session" with the Camera with the browser.

The Solution

The obvious solution is to turn off the Windows Firewall.

In Windows XP and Vista, you can only turn the Firewall on or off. If you turn the Firewall off at home so you can use your cameras, you certainly want to turn it back on when you go into town for coffee.

In Windows 7, you can turn the Firewall off for Private networks and on for Public networks. This way when you are connected to a "Home" or "Work" network, you can have the Firewall off (since no one on your local network is trying to pry into your computer), but when you are connected to a public WiFi hotspot (at Starbucks, for instance), the Firewall will be on to protect you from errant hackers.

A better solution is to use a better firewall program. We have tested the free version of ZoneAlarm on our computers here at Ayrstone, and have found it to be excellent, particularly for our Windows XP and Vista computers. Other firewall products may also work well - leave us a comment if you find one that works.

Once you turn off the Windows Firewall, you can access the camera:

If you don't want to disable the firewall or use a different firewall program, there is still one more solution: set a static route on your computer to each of your Hubs.

To do this, you must know the local IP address of each of your Hubs, which will always start with a "10" and end with a "1" - e.g. 10.123.234.1. The local IP addresses of the Remote Hubs are shown on AyrMesh.com. The local IP address of the Gateway Hub is most easily discovered by connecting your computer to it and observing your IP address. If your computer's IP address (when connected to the Gateway Hub) is 10.123.234.222, then the Hub's address is 10.123.234.1.

Then, you have to start an "Administrator Command Prompt." To do this, click the "Start" button, then click "All Programs," then the "Accessories" folder.

In the Accessories folder, right click on the "Command Prompt" icon, and select "Run as Administrator" from the menu.

At the Administrator Command Prompt, you'll enter the following command:

route -p add 10.123.234.0 mask 255.255.255.0 10.0.0.2 metric 1

Where 10.123.234.0 is the equivalent for your Hub - if your Hub's IP address is 10.123.234.1, the entry will be 10.123.234.0. If your Hub's IP address is 10.111.222.1, the entry will be 10.111.222.0.

Once you have entered this on your computer, you'll be able to access your camera on the local network even with the firewall on, and it will "persist" (the -p on the command) even when the machine is rebooted.